http://mmajunkie.comCarey Vanier probably still would be cruising the aisles of Best Buy had one of his managers not asked him about risk.

The Bellator lightweight was interviewing for a promotion at the big-box retailer and realized he hadn’t taken any.

He had always been scared that he wouldn’t be able to provide for his son if he pursued his true passion of fighting professionally in mixed martial arts. But if he didn’t give it a try, he couldn’t live with himself.

Not long after, he decided to jump with both feet into a new career. He had watched his old college buddy – and future Bellator stablemate – Roger Huerta catapult to MMA stardom, and he soon would follow. It wouldn’t be easy. Three-hundred dollars was the average payday for the three fights he took prior to his son’s arrival.

He was giving up the Best Buy manager’s position he had worked to get. He was tired of sitting on the sidelines of the fight game.

He was an All-American at Ridgewater College and felt his wrestling would give him the advantage when he eventually worked his way up the ranks.

“I was like, ‘I can do this,'” Vanier (8-3 MMA, 1-1 BFC) said.

During his lean years, he cruised the local circuit as he scaled back his day-job responsibilities as part of his “exit strategy.” He moved into his mom’s basement, and she took over his car payments. He got the motivation to train every day when he woke up at 5:30 a.m. and glanced at his son sleeping beside him.

Now, with what’s likely to be the toughest fight of his career just days away, he feels he made the right choice.

“Looking back, maybe I should have stuck with MMA, and who knows where my career would be at right now,” he said. “On the flip side, I could say that I wouldn’t have been able to take care of my son.”

Vanier welcomes UFC veteran Rich Clementi (35-16-1 MMA, 0-0 BFC) into the Bellator cage this Thursday at Bellator 28 in New Orleans. The winner of the fight gets a spot in the promotion’s season-four lightweight tournament.

It’s also a chance for Vanier to redeem himself after a disappointing end to his first bid at Bellator gold. After stopping Joe Duarte in the quarterfinals of the promotion’s season-two lightweight tournament, he was submitted by Toby Imada, a season-one finalist who eventually fell short to season-two winner Pat Curran.

A win over the highly experienced Clementi would be a huge feather in his cap. It would also open the door to season four’s tournament prize, including a hefty check that could allow him to pay back his mom.

He’s now a regular at Greg Jackson’s MMA mecca in Albuquerque, N.M., after WEC veteran Donald Cerrone enlisted him for wrestling knowledge. After slinging leather with some of the sport’s best, he wants to prove he can hang with Clementi.

“I think at every point in most MMA fighters’ careers, they think about that one big fight that they’re going to get (and) the opportunity to show the world what they’re capable of,” Vanier said. “I’m definitely looking at this fight as that opportunity.

“By no means would I ever overlook Rich, but at the same time, I’m not going to say that he’s somebody that I can’t beat. I think that this is going to be a good fight to show everybody what I’ve learned from my first fight in Bellator to this fight now.”

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